Anatomize

Anyone who heard about Brutal Bands Records knows Scott Ellingboe. Ever since its emergence, Brutal Bands have been putting out some really quality underground brutal death metal releases by bands such as Emeth, Abysmal Torment, Element, Devourment, Insidious Decrepancy, Human Mincer etc. Just like Steve Green of Comatose Music, Scott plays in a band too and it’s really as good as Steve’s projects Lust of Decay and Atrocious Abnormality. In fact it’s better than the later one. Now I’m not comparing those two bands with this; I’m just giving brief background info. First album released through Brutal Bands was also of Incinerate’s Dissecting the Angels back in 2002. I never really got around to checking out that album so I can’t really say anything about that but as far as Anatomize is concerned, I gotta admit this is one of the finest technical brutal death metal albums I ever heard.

Scott on guitar and Jesse Watson on vocals but they needed a percussionist and bassist. So they hired Darren Cesca on drums and Erland Caspersen on bass. Cesca appeared on Goratory, and Pillory releases, while bassist Erlend Caspersen has performed on Emeth and Deeds of Flesh releases. So both newly hired members were masters of their respective jobs. The performance of both these guys speaks for itself. Bass playing of Caspersen is really sumptuous and the drumming of Cesca is adroit. In my opinion when Mr. Cesca is let off the lead and allowed to blast and blast, there aren't many drummers with as good a sound and groove as this guy. Special mention must go to the remaining two members of the band too. Scott’s guitar work is really solid, technical, intense and almost flawless. Watson’s inflated hoarse vocals are varied and brutal with a good range that flows smoothly with the music. Devourment’s Mike Majewski appeared as guest vocals on the song Anathema. Being not a big fan of Majewski’s vocals I’m happy not to make out much of his inhales since they are buried under Watson’s powerful snarls most of the time.

Everything has been played with great precision and technique. One area where Incinerate beat their contemporaries is the clarity in their sound, in particular the guitars. In a sub-genre riddled with murky guitars playing technical riffs it can take the mind power of a supernatural to unravel the mix and figure out what's being played, but Anatomize’s every riff, every chug, every pick of every string can be heard without straining the ear. This is technical brutal death metal, which is relentless in its blasting, ever shifting riffs with complex arrangements, constant barrages of vocals, chunky Suffo breakdowns. Production is nearly perfect which allows the music to have its utmost effect on the listener and not be needlessly coercive. The Brutality of the music is non-stop and the overall sound is also incredibly chaotic.

Please don’t let the cheap cover art fool you. Anatomize is an excellent CD worth buying for yourself and a horde of brutal death metal addicts like you, If you are sick of extreme technical brutality or even sick of reading those two words, you'd best steer clear of Incinerate’s Anatomize then, because it's not your average technical brutal death metal. It’s definitely worthy of your time and consideration which unfortunately is not the case with every album the genre is churning out at the moment.